Page 20 of Innocent Target

“Well, I feel the old Mercy coming back, but she’s not quite there yet. Why don’t you come into the backyard? I have a cooler with some beers calling our names. Get your stuff and follow me in.”

And once more she was following his orders. Making sure to lock the car, Mercy grabbed what was left and followed him inside the house. James had Abbie gurgling on his chest as he heated her formula.

“Do you need help with her? I can take care of the bottle if you want?”

James didn’t even look at her. “No need. It’s all under control.”

He may as well dropped a bucket of ice water over her head with his tone. “I’m leaving everything else on the kitchen table if you need anything before Nick arrives.”

Dismissed with his lack of a reply, Mercy went to join Ian.

The deck was vast, adapted for Ian’s wheelchair and overlooked a beautiful backyard. The flower beds were definitely Marnie’s work.

“Welcome to my new haven. Since the kids are at college, Marnie decided the yard was ours again and gave it a makeover. What do you think?”

Accepting the beer with a smile, Mercy sat by Ian. “Your yard is amazing, as is your house. By the way, where is your lovely wife and kids?”

“Gone to see her mother in upstate New York. The kids went with her, so your call was perfect timing. Too bad you waited for an emergency to come pay me and my backyard a visit, kid.”

That stopped her mid-sip, closing her throat. What could she say?

“That’s another first, you speechless. I swear each time I caught you on the phone, you filled every single second of it, barely allowed me to speak, and now we’re face to face at last, I thought you’d talk my ear off.”

Unable to swallow her drink, she put it down. “I’m sorry, Ian.”

With her tears about to flow again, Mercy had never felt so unsteady in her life, especially in the middle of such a dangerous mission. She felt as if she were constantly under fire.

Ian rolled closer and surprised her when he took her hand. Something inside her cracked at the gesture. “I’m so sorry, Ian. I don’t know why you’re even talking to me, let alone welcoming us here. Not after I destroyed your life.”

She tried to pull her hand from his, but Ian was a strong man. “I suspected as much, and I’d hoped to have this conversation years ago. Mercy, you’re going to be quiet and listen to me.”

Last time she’d heard Ian using that tone of voice was when she was a rookie and had taken down a drug dealer by herself without telling him. “There’s nothing you can say, Ian.”

“Mercy Broussard, close your mouth and listen! I always knew you were a brilliant woman, but if you think you had anything to do with what happened, you’re a fool!”

“Weren’t we in the same shootout by the pier? Where I was shot, and you almost bled to death? Because I remember it damn well, Ian.”

Her former partner shook his head, his frown set. “I’d been taken by a mad man who was about to kill me. If not for you, I’d be six feet under.”

“If I’d been faster, you wouldn’t be trapped in that chair! If I’d been more accurate, I’d have killed that fucker before he shot you!” Unable to stay still, tears streaming down her face, she stood. “I cursed the heavens for not taking that bullet through the heart! How could I face you when I’d failed you?”

Wiping her wet cheeks with the back of her hands, Mercy almost stumbled when Ian placed himself in the way.

“Now, Officer Broussard, sit down, shut up, and listen to me. I swear you’ll hear me out if it’s the last thing I do!”

If anything, she owed him that much, even if it wrecked her soul forever.

Once she was seated, Ian placed himself in front of her. She suspected it was to stop her escaping. “Mercy Broussard, get it through that thick skull of yours that I owe you my life. Without you, my wife would’ve been a widow, and my children would’ve lost their father. I was there. I know what I saw. Did you ever read the final report on the operation?”

Mercy shook her head. “I was in enough trouble after barging in on the rescue. They blamed me and stripped all my commendations.”

“That’s why you left the force?”

“I left because I couldn’t bear not seeing you around, or remaining there, even as part of SWAT. I went back to my family, but it only took a month to remind me why I’d left in the first place. So I traveled for a bit. It seemed the right thing to do.”

“And that’s when you ended up on the West Coast and got that stunt job?”

For the first time, she felt like smiling at the memory. “Your extensive driving techniques paid off for sure. Still helps today. That job was fun while it lasted.”